From a very young age, I’ve had a deep-seated fear of being controlled and having my freedom curtailed. The thought of being held against my will (physically and/or emotionally) brings about such a pervasive feeling of helplessness and hopelessness, that keeping my will to survive would become an everyday challenge. For me, such a fear has manifested itself in “chase” nightmares, where I’m typically on the run trying to elude a potential captor. Or, if I’ve already been captured, the dream becomes a more complex scenario of trying to outwit or out-smart my captor… I usually do this by befriending and/or manipulating my captor while trying to control my debilitating fear of death at their hands and plan my escape. I do escape on occasion, but I’m not always lucky. If I’m not, I usually wake up before the fatal blow or gunshot.
Over the last ten years or so, I’ve discovered the category of literature and film that exemplifies this precise fear. In terms of literature, it’s a fairly new genre (only about 120 years or so), and it’s called Dystopia. By definition, dystopia is the opposite of utopia, and can be further subdivided depending on the circumstantial settings of the work. Dystopia is a future society or civilization in which living conditions are physically and/or emotionally miserable and can be characterized by anything ranging from suspension of civil liberties and abridgement of human rights, violence, oppression, war, poverty, disease, pollution, or combinations of all. The causes can also range from anything including natural disasters and apocalyptic events, to economic and/or societal breakdown, to the rise of oligarchic and/or totalitarian forms of government.
Most of the back story of a political dystopia is explained early in the work or as the plot progresses. As with P.D. James' The Children of Men, the dystopia is explained in the beginning with the last birth on Earth occurring in 1995, and how the world (specifically England) was effected; eventually giving rise to a leftist dictatorship devoid of human compassion. In some dystopias, like the prequel trilogy in George Lucas' Star Wars epic space opera, the emerging dystopia was a carefully planned and executed plot by a seemingly unassuming senator who quietly designs to destroy The Republic (the standing governing democracy), and to create the Galactic Empire (the ruling totalitarian regime throughout the original trilogy). In some cases, dystopias are the result of the pursuit of a Utopian principle that seems idealistic in theory and intends a positive outcome for the inhabitants, but is tragically flawed in practice, resulting in negative consequences. Usually, a disastrous event is introduced early in the work such as a war and/or revolution, environmental disaster, overpopulation, etc., and in an effort to better (or repair) society, a shift in previous systems of government to a more controlled system emerges.
In many dystopian works, such totalitarian regimes are ruled by tyrannical despots. In the film adaption of V for Vendetta, High Chancellor Adam Sutler (Adam Susan in Alan Moore's graphic novel) usurps power through a series of secretly released fatal airborne pathogens (which reach national pandemic proportions) by his own political party in an effort to influence voters in the election (the party blames Muslim terrorists). After he takes power, Sutler ensures peace and security to the public from external acts of terror by setting up a stringent, far-right fascist regime reminiscent of the Hitler's Germany following the Reichstag Fire Decree. In Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four, Big Brother is a created entity by the ruling far-left Stalinist party intended to subjugate the public into obedience through surveillance and fear by using the slogan, "Big Brother is watching you." In some cases, before the despots achieve absolute power, they are presented as demagogues who pander to the prejudices, emotions, and fears of the public in order to gain trust. In Orwell's Animal Farm (a precursor to Nineteen Eighty-Four), Napoleon the pig possesses such qualities, and is widely accepted as a satirical form of Joseph Stalin. These leaders can be charismatic figures and gifted orators who generate massive waves of devotion and worship from their followers. Xan Lyppiatt, the Warden of England in James' The Children of Men engenders elements of charm and humor while simultaneously encompassing a lack of conscience. In ABC's upcoming remake of the hit 1980s mini-series and subsequent series, V, Anna (the leader of the invading alien race) is beautiful, soft-spoken, reassuring, and she encourages skeptical humans into "embracing change" (a seemingly deliberate jab at President Obama's campaign slogan). A demagogue's goal is to achieve fierce loyalty, devotion, and even worship from followers, and demagogy itself can be found in countless cult leaders throughout the last century in America (Charles Manson, Jim Jones, David Koresh, etc.). Demagogy is common in standing dictatorships throughout the world, as well as religious extremist organizations (islamo-fascist groups like al-Qaeda, The Taliban, etc.). Such figures are masters of manipulation and deception, and effectively change a person's thought process by exploiting tragic flaws in their internal belief system, annihilating what a person has known to be true up to that point in their lives. Once accomplished, the leader or group then rebuilds and molds the person to the ideology of the leader or group, achieving complete devotion in the process. In it's simplest meaning, the term to use for such tactics is brainwashing.
And finally, the ultimate tool of societal control in fictional political dystopias is fear, with the height of such fear being torture and/or death by the governing body. In the Star Wars universe, fear is mentioned countless times and in countless situations as an emotion exclusive to the dark side of the force. Even living in a free society and democracy, no one can escape fear. Fear is arguably the most dangerous of all human emotions, and indeed controls various aspects of our everyday lives from very simple forms, to complex circumstances. Fear keeps people trapped as slaves to undesirable living situations, negative behavior patterns, unsatisfying jobs, commitment phobias, and finally, fear can keep one trapped in one's own mind. In fictional political dystopias, usually a state-run secret police organization instills terror in the hearts of it's citizens. In The Handmaid's Tale, it's the Eyes. In The Children of Men, it's the State Security Police. In V for Vendetta, it's the Fingermen. In Blind Faith, it's The Temple. In Nineteen Eighty-Four, it's the Thought Police. In Animal Farm, it's the dogs. In Yevgeny Zamyatin's We, it's The Guardians. Like every other technique employed by a dictatorial regime to control its people, the secret police embody the fear of being arrested at any moment for any reason and simply disappearing forever. Within the dystopian work itself, stories of the secret police often circulate involving arrest, torture and execution for anything deemed to be treason by the ruling class. With such powerful and covert security organizations in place, the people of the dystopian society do everything in their power to appear to be ordinary conforming citizens incapable of dissent, as well as to try to remain invisible and show their loyalty to the ruling class. A perfect example of the implementation of complete fear is in Nineteen Eighty-Four after Winston is captured and endures day-to-day torture in the The Ministry of Love, culminating in horror when he was exposed to what he dreaded most in Room 101, breaking both his promise to himself, as well as his spirit. Another example is when Offred is found out by Serena Joy in The Handmaid's Tale, and Offred waits in her room in complete fear when she hears the security van for The Eyes pull into the driveway, creating an intense sense of anxiety and anticipation for the reader.
Interestingly, in many cases, such as films V for Vendetta or Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones, fear is what indeed creates the dystopia. In V for Vendetta, Chancellor Sutler promises to restore peace and order after a bio-terrorist attack (which he himself instigated) if they surrender a few civil liberties in order for their "protection." In Attack of the Clones, the senate votes "emergency powers" to Chancellor Palpatine in much the same way as Sutler to increase "security" for the people of The Republic against the aggressive Separatist movement (which Palpatine secretly controls as his alter-ego, Darth Sidious). Of course, full-blown dictatorships followed in each case as martial law was declared and constitutions were suspended. To quote Benjamin Franklin, "They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety." A real life example includes The Reichstag Fire in Berlin (blamed on communist radicals), which allowed Hitler to suspend civil liberties and declare martial law. Merely weeks later, the Enabling Act was passed and allowed Hitler to create and enforce any law without passage through the Reichstag. And as history always repeats itself, passage of the Patriot Act became a vigorously debated topic in post-9/11 security policy because of the alarming power vacuum it creates to the executive branch of government without the checks and balances of the legislative or the judicial branches (surveillance and arrest without due process). In essence, the age old question is asked, "Is art imitating life, or is life imitating art?" Fear mongering by ruling regimes in politically dystopian literature and film is central to both plot and theme.
The protagonist or hero in politically dystopian fiction is almost always someone from within the society of the regime who questions their society's way of life, and has an acute sense of something horribly wrong within the society. The hero becomes so obsessed with the wrongs of the ruling class and the living conditions for society, that the only thing that begins to consume him/her is either escape or overturning the social order, even if he/she risks his/her own life. The protagonist can either be from a lower class of society, or a high-ranking official who sees the truth of the regime's nature, and seeks to make things better. However, sometimes, such as in the case of Offred in The Handmaid's Tale, the protagonist is too full of fear to act out. Offred remains a silent victim throughout the book, enduring the excruciating lifestyle that she and her class of women have been forced to live. She lacks the strength and defiance of her old college roommate, Moira, and constantly shifts back to her memories of "the time before," and the living conditions she took for granted. She has accepted her lot in life.
The conflict and rising action usually involves some sort of secret society of dissidents within the dystopia into whom the protagonist begins to put faith. Many times, such dissidents obtain illegal goods, as well as items thought to be long extinct by purchasing through black-markets (indeed the ruling powers have access to black market items as well). We follow the protagonist's struggle in their belief that things can be made better, as he/she begins to take actions that could risk their life and limb if discovered. The climax and denouement usually involves someone or a group within the totalitarian regime discovering the protagonist's seditious behavior (often by surprise), and attempts to subjugate he/she by force. In many cases, the story remains unresolved, and at times, even the protagonist is forced into conformity and succumbs to hopelessness (such as Winston Smith in Nineteen Eighty-Four). However, in other cases, such as The Children of Men, Theo Faron takes his cousin's place as Warden of England, hinting (though not expressly clear) that he will give up his power when the time is right, and when England returns to "normal." In The Handmaid's Tale, we never fully know what happens to the protagonist Offred, as her tapes from the Gileadean period of North American history are found centuries later and discussed in an academic conference. In the conclusion of the original 1983 mini-series, V, the humans send a message out into space in the hopes that other alien races will come assist them in their fight against the visitors (though, the mini-series sequel, V: The Final Battle, as well as the subsequent regular TV series continue the story).
And now, to bring things to a first person perspective, I consider myself an average American. I'm politically moderate; independent of the domineering two-party system. As I've illustrated, drastic moves to either side of the fence can lead to disaster and create real-life dystopia in America's near future. The only thing that maintains our way of life is BALANCE...balance between political ideologies, freedom to maintain our own thoughts and beliefs without fear of persecution, and freedom to speak and assemble as we see fit. Checks and balances between our three branches of government are there for a reason, and should contain a multitude of political ideology and thought...not just our two-party corrupted system which leaves opportunities for enormous power vacuums toward either side. I encourage everyone to think for themselves. Examine all sides of every hot-button issue in America politics, and avoid picking a side because you consider yourself "democrat" or "republican." It's okay to engender both "liberal" and "conservative" ideologies simultaneously (GOOD NEWS, it means you're normal!). Don't be led in blind faith by the two giants who control our country and wield propaganda through mass-media. HELL, don't even trust the media! Their job is to report the news (regardless of whether there is truth in their reporting!). There are indeed those in our midst who wish to divide and conquer us while subverting the Constitution in an effort to control American society as they see fit. Believe it! I'm not steering you wrong. Be skeptical of everything. The American way of life depends on the Americans, not politics. No matter what our differences, we can all definitely unite in defending our lifestyles (not just from external threats, but more insidious internal threats who seek to undermine us), as well as appreciate what our country has maintained for the past 233 years.
Finally, I wanted to share with the masses in the blogosphere that I'm writing my own politically dystopian work of fiction, and my goal is to be complete by mid 2010. It's a timely work dealing with a widely debated hot-button topic. I'm very excited, and I'm several chapters into the story with a pretty good idea of the plot's direction and ending. Will it be a bestseller? Who knows? At the moment, I feel that it's a story within me that I just need to get out...regardless of book sales or fame. I want to provoke thought from the unlikeliest of readers. I want it to be a tool for education. Ultimately, I feel like it will be my own contribution to society.
Enjoy the trailer for the 2010 remake of V:
As we fight this bitterly cold winter, we are comforted by the thought that spring is officially less than two months away, and our thoughts begin to drift to warm days in the park, barbeques with friends, and margaritas on outdoor patios. That being said, we eagerly begin to look forward to shedding those winter layers in exchange for lighter and brighter fabrics.
The prevailing trend of the last few seasons in men’s ready-to-wear is tailored, slim cut trousers and jeans (slightly cropped at the ankle), combined with preppy layers and loafers or oxfords without socks, and this trend continues to predominate the runways. The popular early ‘60s Mod styling shows no signs of slowing down when reviewing the upcoming F/W 2009 collections as well.
However, a few new trends for this season have been noted…
In t-shirts and sweaters, the sizes continue to increase as the decade draws to a close… Fitted tees and sweaters in the earlier part of the decade are rapidly expanding and becoming fuller in the men’s silhouette. A good example of this can be seen below in slouchier styles.
As men’s skinny pants continue to permeate the fashion world unfettered, a slowly emerging trend towards fuller trousers has begun to surface… By Spring 2010, I predict a lot of pleating will finally return to menswear as well. Below are some good examples of fuller cuts in pants.
Another men’s trend that continues to dominate the past few spring seasons is shorts. Beginning with longer lengths ending just above the knee a few years back, the length continues to rise, mirroring styles from the late ‘70s and early ‘80s. Whether casual or dressy, shorts are no longer for the playground and the beach.
And finally… The color combo that saturated runways last fall for the upcoming season is yellow and gray. I remember noting Sienna Miller’s dress (as Edie Sedgwick) in Factory Girl in early 2007 during her first tour of The Factory (a flirty mid sixties number), and knew it wouldn’t be long before designers started capitalizing on the visually pleasing combo. Below are some great examples
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Happy shopping.
~Chuck
